First enacted in 1974, an estimated 500,000 to 750,000 people in California are subject to the PRA. Rules on campaign spending and funding, conflicts of interest, and Form 700s are all part of the PRA.

The revision project will not change the substance of the law, but is designed to make the law less complex, with less “legalese” and more plain English. It is also aimed at putting the various laws and regulations into groupings that are more obvious, intuitive and understandable to the average person.

After initial drafts which included partners such as the California Constitution Center at Berkeley Law and UC Davis School of Law, the first draft was made public. Those public comments were incorporated, and another draft included the work of nationally-recognized legal author Professor Bryan Garner and his team at LawProse.